Northeast Florida officials have begun the pitch to secure $2 million in sales tax exemptions for improvements to EverBank Field.

The bill (SB 922) adds a provision to state law allowing current publicly owned stadiums to be eligible for a $2 million annual sales tax rebate over 30 years “in order to meet or exceed the league’s facility standard."

The team already has a similar $2 million annual exemption under a law that allows the use of incentive money to keep or retain teams that play at publically owned fields. That exemption has 12 years left.

Speakers, all of whom were in favor of the bill, argued it was needed so the stadium could compete for big sporting events and so its current college bowl game does not lose prestige.

“The Gator Bowl could lose some slotting as far as pecking order,” said Rick Catlett, president of the Gator Bowl.

State Sen. Rob Bradley, the bill’s sponsor, said the it’s about ensuring an economic development engine in the region remains viable.

“Anyone who has been around Northeast Florida for a longtime knows in 1993, when the NFL came and awarded the [Jaguars], it was a game-changer for the region,” Bradley said.

The bill has two more committee stops in the Senate. It has not yet received a hearing in the House.